Search

Manitobans would rather share a meal with friends than exchange gifts during the holidays

Let the President's Choice® brand help you celebrate the holidays with
food and friends

WINNIPEG, Nov. 7, 2013 /CNW/ - (TSX: L) - A new survey conducted by the
team at President's Choice® found that the majority (88 per cent) of Manitoba grocery shoppers
would prefer to share a meal with friends than exchange gifts during
the holidays. Lucky for you, this holiday season Real Canadian
Superstore® locations and the President's Choice® brand have everything you need to get you out of the kitchen and
spending more time with family and friends.

The poll also shows that the 46 per cent of Manitobans spend five or
more hours cooking for their holiday dinner or party. And, while most
Manitobans(73 per cent) do not set a holiday grocery budget, most of those that do
(27 per cent) spend more than their usual weekly grocery budget-
approximately $173 on average.

"The holidays are almost here and the President's Choice® brand wants to help you make the most of this season. From a variety
of delicious new foods, recipes and entertaining ideas, we want to help
you get out of the kitchen and spend more time with family and
friends," says Tom Filippou, executive chef, President's Choice® brand.

See below for more results from the President's Choice® brand holiday shopping trends survey

48 per cent of Manitobans plan on purchasing ready-made appetizers/
party food at the grocery store this holiday season

Make your party more exotic and serve something unexpected by offering
your guests appetizers and hors d'oeuvres inspired by flavours from
around the world. Moroccan cuisine is the flavor trend this year. Try
the new PC® Moroccan Cigars Hors Oeuvres which have a savory Moroccan-inspired beef filling with notes of
cinnamon and cumin. Or, surprise your guests with something unique like
the new PC® Dim Sum Hors D'Oeuvres Collection or the new PC® Shrimp & Scallop Sushi Bites.

Overall, 70 per cent of Manitobans said the food they most look forward
to eating over the holiday is the main course

According to the poll, turkey is the holiday dinner must-have for 58 per
cent of Manitobans. Try the PC® Easy-Carve™ Turkey and make things easy for yourself. The whole, semi-boneless, seasoned
turkey comes with cranberry stuffing and homestyle gravy to help you
serve eight to 12 hungry guests like a pro. Entertaining a smaller
crowd? Use the PC® Easy-Carve™ Turkey Breast Roast with Cranberry Stuffing and Gravy that's ideal for four to six guests. Don't forget sides for your main
course- try the PC® Diced Butternut Squash, PC® Honey-Roasted Root Vegetables, PC® Miss
Blush™ Potatoes and our PC® Broccoli Florets.

77 per cent of Manitobans attend two or more holiday parties every year

60 per cent of Canadians said they would love food as a gift, with four
in five of those preferring something homemade over something
purchased.

Need an idea for a homemade gift? Try bringing over a homemade dessert
and wrap it in pretty packaging to make it even more special. Our
favourite baking mixes include the PC® Shortbread Cookie Mix or the PC® Red Velvet Baking Mix. For something new, try the PC® The Decadent™ Molten Chocolate Cake Baking Mix or the PC® Nanaimo Bar Baking Mix to bring your baking to the next level.

Hungry for more? Visit pc.ca to find more great products, recipes and videos to help you with your
holiday entertaining.

Results are from a national online survey conducted by Vision Critical
from October 10th - 15th, 2013 amongst 1,009 Canadians (361 Ontarians) aged 18+ across all
provinces who are Angus Reid Forum panelists and who are the primary or
shared grocery shopper for their household. Margin of error - which
measures sampling variability - for Canadian results is +/-3.1% 19
times out of 20, for Manitoba results +/-8.7% 19 times out of 20.

About Loblaw Companies Limited TSX:L

Loblaw Companies Limited, a subsidiary of George Weston Limited, is
Canada's largest food retailer and a leading provider of drugstore,
general merchandise and financial products and services. Loblaw is one
of the largest private sector employers in Canada. With more than 1,000
corporate and franchised stores from coast to coast, Loblaw and its
franchisees employ more than 134,000 full-time and part-time employees.
Through its portfolio of store formats, Loblaw is committed to
providing Canadians with a wide, growing and successful range of
products and services to meet the everyday household demands of
Canadian consumers. Loblaw is known for the quality, innovation and
value of its food offering. It offers Canada's strongest control
(private) label program, including the unique President's Choice®, no
name® and Joe Fresh® brands. In addition, the Company makes available
to consumers President's Choice Financial® services and offers the PC® points and PC Plus™ loyalty program.